Houston 'chupacabra' sighting could be real animal purposely bred

by Heather Alexander, Houston Chronicle

Published 5:09 pm, Monday, February 3, 2014

Phylis Canion holds a photo of what she thinks could be a chupacabra in Cuero, Texas. She found the strange looking animal dead outside her ranch and thinks it is responsible for killing many of her chickens.
Photo: Eric Gay, AP

Phylis Canion holds a photo of what she thinks could be a...

Phylis Canion displays the head of the creature.
Photo: Eric Gay, AP

Phylis Canion displays the head of the creature.

What some folks are calling a chupacabra is probably just a strange breed of dog, said veterinarian Travis Schaar in nearby Victoria.
Photo: Eric Gay, AP

What some folks are calling a chupacabra is probably just a strange...

Phylis Canion examines the head of the beast. She has started selling T-shirts that read: ``2007, The Summer of the Chupacabra, Cuero, Texas,'' accompanied by a caricature of the creature. The $5 shirts have gone all over the world, including Japan, Australia and Brunei.
Photo: Eric Gay, AP

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Photo: Bentley Archive/Popperfoto, Popperfoto/Getty Images

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Photo: Dave Caulkin, File, AP

A recent sighting of the mythical chupacabra could be the result of exotic animal owners interbreeding their pets, according to a Houston animal control expert.

Two residents of the Doliver Point gated community near Gessner and Doliver claim to have seen giant footprints alongside Buffalo Bayou and say they have photos to prove it is the mysterious chupacabra.

Scott Black and David McKee took several photos of the animal Sunday, according to KPRC news.

"It was very vicious, very long, longer than a human," said Claude Griffen from Gotcha Pest control, who was brought into check out the photos. "It was a pretty big animal, very well fed."

Griffen said it's not the first one he's come across and asserts that people are deliberately trying to breed animals that match descriptions of these mythical creatures.

"They are real animals, they are cross-breeds that are hazardous to humans. They are just looking for food. They'd probably kill your cat," Griffen said.

Griffen said that this animal could be a mix between a greyhound and a wolf. "People are looking for the big prize, they want the $10,000 reward for finding one."

Houston animal control officials said they have heard of people trying to breed dogs that look like so-called direwolves from the TV show Game of Thrones. "You can cross breeds," said Officer Chris Glasser, "but so far we haven't seen any of them out there."

Back in 2007, Phylis Canion of Cuero, Texas, claimed she found a dead chupacabra on her ranch after it had been killing her chickens.

Just last week, bigfoot hunter Rick Dyer said he would take his catch killed in the San Antonio area on tour to prove to skeptics that the myths are true.

Dyer said he caught the 8-foot bigfoot in 2012 after luring it into the open with a set of Wal-mart ribs he rubbed with a secret ingredient.

Animal rights group PETA said it's time for hunters to stop trying to kill any exotic animal they see.